Turquoise organization is a concept popularized by business coach Frederic Laloux. Laloux holds an MBA from INSEAD and a diploma in coaching. In his book Work Differently, the visionary divided organizations into four different groups. Each stage in development corresponds to a different color.

The red organization has the fact that employees are dependent on the supervisor, often they are also afraid of him. The amber organization is characterized by a strong hierarchy and clearly defined rules that must be followed, while the orange one is corporations – the hierarchy is dynamic and effectiveness is considered the greatest value. The last color, i.e. turquoise organization, is a company in which employees have greater decision-making power, often only they are employed in the enterprise.

The turquoise governance model places the greatest emphasis on democracy, freedom and cooperation. Employees are not subject to anyone, they create the company themselves and fulfill its missions. Everyone does what they can and takes full responsibility for it. Turquoise organizations are distinguished by great freedom – employees have a sense of community and make decisions as a team. In order for turquoise management to be effective, each employee must know what he is striving for and what responsibility he bears in the company. It is also necessary to have a lot of trust – in turquoise companies there is often a truly homely atmosphere.

According to Laloux, the three most important pillars of turquoise are:

• self-management – the ability of team members to take responsibility and flexibly adapt to current challenges;
• striving for fullness – the feeling that at work you can be yourself, in a turquoise company the emotionality, spirituality and intuition of colleagues are respected. Instead of blaming problems, solutions are sought together;
• evolutionary purpose – team members help to achieve the goals of one organism, which is the organization, because they know that a given product / service is needed by customers. Thanks to this awareness, the company is developing very dynamically.

Turquoise companies enjoy a very good workplace atmosphere – employees like what they do and appear at work with pleasure. The biggest advantage of this management model is the high level of engagement. In a turquoise organization, everyone is responsible for their competences and can develop creativity without any restrictions. Problems are solved together as a team, not behind closed doors. Thanks to this, employees feel that they are an important part of the company and are more motivated to act on its behalf.

There are already companies in the world that operate in a „turquoise way”, what’s more, they are developing extremely dynamically. These include AES, FAVit and Morning Star. In these enterprises there is one type of workplace – the employee. Salaries depend on the functions performed and are decided by the employees themselves.

Turquoise organizations are also present in our country. Turquoise organizations in Poland are:

• PKS Gdańsk-Oliwa SA – the president of the transport company eliminated managerial positions and introduced turquoise management. In a letter to his subordinates, he wrote that he would like to hear from a retiring employee that nothing better could have happened to him than working for this company;
• WINS – an IT company has completely modernized the way of management – in the enterprise everyone is equal and can make important decisions, there is no structure or leadership. Each employee can pursue new challenges according to their talents and interests;
• Halibut – Training Group – a training company has undergone a huge transformation in internal structures. Today, it operates on the principle of self-organization – each employee is equally responsible for the shape of the company, in accordance with the turquoise management model proposed by Laloux;
• Brewa s.c. – a photovoltaic company operates on the basis of trust, commitment and independence of employees. Everyone who creates it is responsible for the decisions made and works together for profit, without which the organization would not be able to function or develop, employees set their own salaries;
• Kamsoft Podlasie Sp. – a modern model of organization has also been implemented in KAMSOFT. Employees can count on fixed salaries depending on the position and internship allowances, the whole team decides how the profit bonuses are divided. If the employee has an initiative, he is obliged to consult with all interested parties and can then make an independent decision, provided that he is ready to take full responsibility for the consequences of his actions.

Source: https://executiveclub.pl/2021/02/01/czym-jest-turkusowa-organizacja-poznaj-etapy-rozwoju-firmy/

Projekt otrzymał dofinansowanie z Norwegii poprzez Fundusze Norweskie 2014-2021, w ramach programu „Dialog społeczny – godna praca”.